Male condom

ABSTRACT

Condom for protection against the transfer of sexually transmitted diseases, comprising a flexible thin-walled tube having a closed end and an open end, said open end having a means for stretching it radially, which comprises a collarette extending in a direction perpendicular to said tube so as to cover the base of the penis.

The present invention relates to male condoms.

While the incidence of AIDS among homosexuals and bisexual men has beenobserved to stabilize, the proportion of the heterosexual populationinfected is still increasing—most of these cases arise from indulgencein sexual relations without taking precautions.

The fight against AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) isa major challenge. One fifth of the adult American population forexample suffers from a sexually transmitted disease, this being a causeof infertility or cancer, and increases the vulnerability to AIDS.

The condom is the best barrier against these diseases, but itseffectiveness depends, among other things, on that part of the body thatis covered and on the way it is used.

To be effective, it is necessary for the man to withdraw immediatelyafter ejaculation so that the condom does not fall off when the penissoftens. The man should always withdraw while his penis is still erectso that the sperm cannot spill out into the vagina or anus. As thisreduces pleasure, this practice is not automatically respected.

At the present time, there are a number of condoms on the market.

One of the disadvantages of the male condom is that the man mustwithdraw immediately after ejaculation in order to prevent sperm fromflowing between the penis and the condom and coming into contact withhis partner's mucous membranes.

It is an object of the present invention to propose a condom thatreduces the risk of transmitting sexually transmitted diseases. It isalso an object of the present invention to reduce the risk of passingsexual fluids between partners.

For this purpose, the invention proposes a condom characterised in thatthe said means for stretching radially the open end comprises acollarette or rim extending in a direction perpendicular to said tube soas to cover the base of the penis during intercourse.

Conventional condoms, even if they are very long, do not in generalcover the erect penis over its entire length and there is a risk of thebase of the penis, which is not covered by the condom, coming intocontact with the woman's body fluids in case of penetration beyond thelimit of the condom. At that moment, it is not possible for the base ofthe condom to be held manually during withdrawal after ejaculation.

The collarette covering the base of the penis keeps the condom in placeand is an effective way of preventing the transmission of diseases sincecontact between the partners' body fluids is prevented. The collaretteforms an effective barrier and prevents the penis from penetrating toodeeply.

Since the collarette remains outside of the vulva or of the anus, theman is able to hold the condom after ejaculation during withdrawal ofhis penis. Even if sperm were to flow out between the penis and thecondom, it would not come into contact with his partner's mucousmembranes owing to the presence of the collarette. This constitutes aconsiderable advantage over known condoms that do not have thiscollarette, with which it may happen that the condom remains jammedinside the vagina or inside the anus after the penis has been slid outafter ejaculation.

According to a first advantageous embodiment, a means to radiallystretch open end comprises a ring that has roughly the same diameter assaid tube and that delimits the collarette with respect to the tube. Theopen end of the tube is kept open using, for example, a plastic ringwhich includes, around its outer perimeter, a collarette.

Advantageously, the collarette includes an elongate protuberance ortongue extending toward the scrotum. Preferably, this tongue covers theregion lying between the vulva and the anus of the woman duringintercourse.

Advantageously, the collarette is made from a more rigid material and/ora thicker material than the thin flexible tube.

In a preferred embodiment, the length of the flexible thin-walled tubeis chosen so that the collarette is maintained in contact with the baseof the penis. With a view to increasing the comfort of the condom, it ispreferable for the collarette to be maintained permanently pressedagainst the scrotum and the pubis. As penises may have different sizes,it is preferable to make condoms available in various lengths. It mightalso be possible to provide various widths of collarette.

In a preferred embodiment, the collarette is maintained and the tube aremade in one piece. Alternatively, the collarette and the tube are madein two separate pieces. The collarette may then comprise a means forfixing said thin-walled tube like for example a groove in which the openend of the tube is lodged.

Advantageously, the flexible thin-walled tube is made from a polymericmaterial such as natural rubber latex (NRL), polyethylene, polyurethaneand derivatives and blends of these materials. The condom may belubricated inside and/or outside with a lubricant suitable for improvingcomfort.

Other features of the invention are described, in a non-limiting way, inthe examples and in relation to the FIGURE which shows a condom.

The condom 10 into which the erect penis can be inserted comprises aflexible thin-walled tube 15 having a closed end 20 and an open end 25.The open end 25 comprises a ring 30 that has roughly the same diameteras said tube 15 and that delimits the collarette 35 with respect to thetube 15. The open end 25 of the tube 15 is kept open using this ring 30,which includes, on its outer perimeter, the collarette 35 made of aharder material to the touch than the thin flexible tube. The collarette35 extends in a direction perpendicular to said tube 15 so as to coverthe base of the penis. The condom 15 also offers good protection againstthe transmission of sexually transmitted diseases as well as efficientprotection against unintentional pregnancies. The collarette, whichextends substantially perpendicular to the base of the penis and reducesthe risk of an overly deep penetration beyond that part of the penisthat is covered by the thin tube, makes the condom safer than a standardmale condom. This ring keeps the condom in position during and afterintercourse. The condom is kept in place on the penis duringintercourse, and likewise the collarette does not in principle move.

The thickness of the tube and of the collarette may vary, it beingunderstood that greater wall and collarette thicknesses reducesensitivity during intercourse. Typical thicknesses for the tube liebetween 20 and 100 microns, while the collarette may be thicker.

Of course, the wall thickness must be such that the resistance tomechanical stresses of the condom laid down by standards in force in thedifferent countries is guaranteed. The dimensions of the condomaccording to the invention are in principle identical to the dimensionsof standard condoms.

The collarette 35 includes an elongate protuberance or tongue 40extending toward the anus, which is placed parallel to the vulva andperpendicular to the tubular part of the condom. The tongue 40 coversthe user's scrotum and the region lying between the woman's vulva andanus during intercourse.

The condom 10 may be produced in various lengths, i.e. the length of thetube 15 may be different depending on the size of the user's penis, sothat for each user the collarette 35 is maintained in contact with thebase of the penis and the pubis. In general, the width of the collarette35 lies between 1 and 4 cm and preferably between 1 and 2 cm. Of course,the width of the collarette 35 need not necessarily be uniform overespecially its perimeter.

The condom 15 is made from a polymeric material such as natural rubberlatex (NRL), polyethylene, polyurethane and derivatives and blends ofthese materials. The condom 15 may be lubricated inside and/or outsidewith a lubricant sufficient to improve the comfort.

Unlike a standard male condom, it is unnecessary to remove the condomaccording to the invention immediately after ejaculation.

1. Male condom for protection against the transfer of sexually transmitted diseases and able to be placed on the penis of a user, the condom comprising: a flexible thin-walled tube having a closed end and an open end, said open end having a means for stretching said open end radially; and a collarette extending in a direction perpendicular to said tube so as to cover the base of the penis during intercourse; wherein said collarette and said tube are made from two separate parts.
 2. Condom as claimed in claim 1, wherein the means for stretching said open end radially comprises a ring that has a diameter substantially the same as a diameter of said tube, the ring delimiting the collarette with respect to the tube.
 3. Condom as claimed in claim 1, wherein the collarette includes an elongate protuberance extending toward the scrotum of the user.
 4. Condom as claimed in claim 1, wherein the collarette is made from a more rigid material than the thin flexible tube.
 5. Condom as claimed in claim 1, wherein the collarette is made from a thicker material than the thin flexible tube.
 6. Condom as claimed in claim 1, wherein the flexible thin-walled tube includes a length such that the collarette is maintained in contact with a base of the penis. 7-8. (canceled)
 9. Condom as claimed in claim 1, wherein said collarette includes a means for fixing said thin-walled tube.
 10. Condom as claimed in claim 9, wherein said means for fixing said thin-walled tube comprises a groove.
 11. Condom as claimed in claim 1, wherein the flexible thin-walled tube is made from a polymeric material.
 12. Condom as claimed in claim 1, wherein the flexible thin-walled tube is made from at least one of a natural rubber latex (NRL), a polyethylene, a polyurethane, or a derivative or blend thereof. 